SPECIAL MEETING MINUTES SANTA MONICA URBAN FOREST TASK FORCE. July 13, :30 PM

Transcription

1

2

3 SPECIAL MEETING MINUTES SANTA MONICA URBAN FOREST TASK FORCE July 13, :30 PM A Special Meeting of the Santa Monica Urban Forest Task Force was called to order by Chair Grace Phillips at 6:38 pm, on Wednesday, July 13, 2016, in the Auditorium of the Joslyn Park Building at 633 Kensington Rd. Roll Call Present: Also Present: APPROVAL OF MINUTES FROM MAY 25, 2016 Task Force Member Christine Angelli Task Force Member Robin Carmichael Vice Chair Tom Cleys Task Force Member Gloria Garvin Chair Grace Phillips Task Force Member Lu Plauzoles Task Force Member David Zuckerman Susan Cline, Director of Public Works Hector Kistemann, Public Landscape Manager, Public Works Matthew Wells, Urban Forester, Public Landscape Division, Public Works Wister Dorta, Urban Forest Supervisor, Public Landscape Division, Public Works Jessica Saks, Staff Assistant III, Public Landscape Division, Public Works 2: Motion by Member Plauzoles to approve the minutes from May 25, 2016 and seconded by Member Carmichael with: AYES: NOES: ABSTAIN: Chair Phillips, Members Angelli, Garvin and Zuckerman. None. Vice Chair Cleys Motion passed. PUBLIC COMMENT 3: There was one public comment by Jerry Rubin, who thanked city staff involved in the new landscaping and inclusion of sustainable plants at Palisades Park and added that it was an honor for the Children s Tree of Life to be among the first five selected Heritage Trees in the new program. REPORT FROM STAFF ON THE URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT UPDATE 4: Mr. Wells presented the Urban Forest Management update: FY15-16 annual report. o Pruning = 9,599 o Removal = 439 o Emergencies = 244 o Planting = 571 o Small Tree Care Visits = 9,177 o Government Outreach Requests = 945 The division was awarded an additional $50k for tree planting in FY Mr. Wells is working with WCA on discerning why the young tree care visit numbers have dropped (13,976 in FY13-14; 11,613 in FY14-15). Stated it was likely due to change in staff at WCA and/or staff combining young tree care tasks (filling water bags, staking, and pruning). Will update UFTF at the next meeting. FY15-16 Top 10 Species Removals o Ficus microcarpa Nitida 1 July 14, 2016

4 Two with thinning canopies removed on Main St.; further testing is needed to determine what is causing this. o Liquidambar styraciflua Drought stress o Metrosideros excelsus Combination of factors o Phoenix canariensis Fusarium o Gingko biloba Climate is too warm o Magnolia grandiflora Drought stress o Pinus canariensis Combination of factors: Drought, ips beetle, pine bark beetle, construction activity Vice Chair Cleys asked if there was any concern with planting this species going forward. Mr. Wells responded that there would not be so long as the trees were provided with a healthy growth environment. Chair Phillips stated that lack of organic material in soil was also a contributing factor. o Arbutus Marina Hit or miss, temperamental (species pulled back for UFMP revision) o Ceratonia siliqua Over mature, decay, structural issues Mr. Wells stated the city would not be planting this species going forward. o Jacaranda mimosifolia Drought Chair Phillips recalled root girdling issues with the Jacarandas planted 10 years ago; this caused them to remain unstable in the ground. Chair Phillips asked if the city was primarily losing over mature trees; Mr. Wells affirmed and advised it was also a combination of drought and root damage. Mr. Wells stated that a comparison of FY15-16 Phoenix canariensis removals would be made to previous years and presented at the next UFTF meeting. FY15-16 Top 10 Species Plantings o Platanus Mexicana o Pinus canariensis o Jacaranda mimosifolia o Afrocarpus gracilior o Quercus agrifolia o Cinnamomum camphora o Erythrina caffra o Ficus microcarpa Nitida o Ginkgo biloba o Cassia leptophylla Mr. Dorta presented on the Mexican sycamores recently planted around Santa Monica, particularly along the Esplanade. o Trees selected and tagged at a nursery in Riverside; moderate to fast growing trees. o Can get up to 30 feet wide, 50 feet high; will fill gaps between the yellow poles along the Esplanade. o Different environmental constraints will lead to the same species looking very different, as in the Platanus mexicana planted on the North and South sides of Colorado. o Vacancies on Pico Blvd. from Ocean to Centinela filled in with smaller, 15 gallon Platanus mexicana. Key Goals FY15/16 Recap o Prune 8,000 and plant 350 trees - Complete o Launch CSM Tree Risk Management Program - Complete o Complete update of Species Designations - Complete 2 July 14, 2016

5 o Complete update of UFMP - Ongoing o Launch Heritage Tree Program - Complete o Improve website educational content - Ongoing o Deliver urban tree care class to community - Complete Key Goals FY16/17 o Prune 9,000 trees and plant 600 trees o Complete updating of the Urban Forest Master Plan o Establish a five-year priority planting plan for Santa Monica Mr. Wells stated he would talk more about the planting prioritization plan at the next UFTF meeting. o Explore contract growing for the five-year program o Update and improve our specifications for urban tree care o Continue to improve & deliver educational content o Add five additional trees to the Heritage Tree Program o Complete the UTC Study Waiting on LiDAR data; expect results in spring Partnership with Task Force o Providing input into City public improvement projects o Review tree removal appeals o Assist with the selection of Heritage Trees o Advocate and support funding initiatives o Evaluate progress on achieving environmental performance goals as specified in the Master Plan o Provide input on implementation of LUCE and development requirements related to public and/or private trees URBAN FOREST OBSERVATIONS 5: Chair Phillips presented on her Urban Forest Observations: Trees stressed throughout the city due to the drought; can trees survive the potential scenario of 15 inches of rain per year to 5 inches of rain per year? Building on 34 th and Pico; Pinus canariensis between the building and the freeway were replaced by Eucalyptus; good frame for that end of Pico Boxed Ficus trees transplanted in Buffer (Ishihara) and Clover Parks; hopeful that they survive ACTION ITEM 6A: Species Designations Urban Forest Master Plan Update Now on long-range agenda for City Council meeting in November Vice Chair Cleys spoke about the issues he had sent in to the UFTF at the May meeting: o Segment 4: Concerned that Afrocarpus falcatus would be very dense downtown Mr. Wells responded that this species was chosen due to: The city receives little to no complaints about this species The species requires little irrigation The species is beneficial for birds and other wildlife o Segment 5: Callistemon citrinus Mr. Wells responded that this species has been very successful in Santa Monica, is low water usage, and the city has received few complaints about the flowers o Segment 10: Podocarpus macrophyllus Per Chair Phillips, there is a limited palette for small cutouts and this species has been successful in small soil volume; in addition, the species is very drought-resistant. o Segment 391: Ceiba speciosa and Neodypsis decaryii in Wilshire Boulevard median Vice Chair Cleys suggested having urban planners involved in the discussion when it comes to the bigger streets like Wilshire, especially if the overall look of the street will be changed. 3 July 14, 2016

6 DISCUSSION ITEMS ACTION ITEM (CONT.) Member Garvin agreed with Vice Chair Cleys that Wilshire has an iconic look, especially for the people who live/work in the area. She suggested an artist s rendering of what it would look like with the new species. Chair Phillips stated that the Urban Forest Task Force is specifically assembled for the purpose of selecting public trees for the city; the UFTF should not pass this responsibility to others. Chair Phillips also advised that Mr. Wells would be presenting the updated species designations to Santa Monica neighborhood groups, and called for item 7A to be moved forward in the agenda so that Mr. Wells could expand on that. 7A: Public outreach for species updates City Boards and Commissions o Planning Commission o Landmarks Commission o Recreation & Parks Commission o Task Force on the Environment o Water Advisory Committee Santa Monica Neighborhood Groups o Friends of Sunset Park o North of Montana Association o Ocean Park Association o Pico Neighborhood Association o Santa Monica Mid City Neighbors o Santa Monica Northeast Neighbors o Wilshire Montana Neighborhood Coalition 6A: Species Designations Urban Forest Master Plan Updates Public comment from Linda Piera-Avila, who opined that it would be nice to have more shade along Wilshire Blvd should Ceiba speciosa be planted in the median. Vice Chair Cleys asked how the process worked if city commissions or neighborhood groups took issue with the revised species designations. Mr. Wells responded that the issues would have to be fair to override the reasonable protocol backing the new species designations; he would, however, be open to making moderate modifications based on public input. Public Works Director Susan Cline added that the staff report to City Council will itemize public responses to the revised species designations. Chair Phillips advised that a special meeting of the UFTF would be called to discuss public comments prior to the staff report/city Council meeting. There was a public comment from Linda Piera-Avila, who mentioned that the public may have an issue with Quercus agrifolia being selected for 18 th St from Montana to Washington, based on past feedback. Motion by Member Plauzoles to approve the adoption of the revised Urban Forest Master Plan in its entirety and seconded by Vice Chair Cleys with AYES: NOES: ABSTAIN: ABSENT: Chair Phillips, Members Angelli, Carmichael and Zuckerman. Member Garvin. None. None. Motion passed. DISCUSSION ITEMS (CONT.) 7B: Future Agenda Items Public response to species designations update Rationale behind tree spacing (suggested by Vice Chair Cleys) Phoenix canariensis removal comparisons Planting prioritization plan 4 July 14, 2016

7 ANNOUNCEMENTS AND CORRESPONDENCE ADJOURNMENT 8: Heritage Tree Program Soft launch on social media and in Seascape Chair Phillips recommended Mr. Wells meet with Member Angelli about the possibility of a GPS-based app for the Heritage Tree Program. 9: On order of Chair Phillips the meeting was adjourned at 8:20pm. APPROVED: ATTEST: Chair Secretary 5 July 14, 2016

8

9

10

11

12 Public Landscape Division Public Works Department 2600 Ocean Park Blvd Santa Monica, CA Tel: (310) Please TYPE or PRINT all information clearly. TREE REMOVAL APPEAL APPLICATION What kind of tree removal appeal are you filing? Please check the correct box. An appeal of a determination to remove a tree An appeal of a determination that a tree cannot be removed Exception Process Is your request related to a planning application or an existing construction project with the city? No Yes, please specify your City contact APPELLANT NAME: APPELLANT ADDRESS: (All correspondence will be mailed to this address) Phone: TREE(S) LOCATION: Please state the specific reason(s) for the appeal (use separate sheet if necessary). REASON FOR APPEAL: APPELLANT SIGNATURE: Date: Please return this form to trees@smgov.net or Public Landscape Division, 2600 Ocean Park Blvd, Santa Monica, CA For office use only. Application Number: Filed: By: 4 of 4

13

14

15 Sunny Santa Monica Now SMA-Accredited Photos Courtesy City of Santa Monica Santa Monica s coastal climate allows for a diverse treescape. Santa Monica, California an idyllic community that has been voted among the top ten beach cities in the past is famous for its beautiful weather (340 days of sunshine a year), iconic 3-mile (4.8 km) stretch of sandy beach, and thriving entertainment district that encompasses the shops and restaurants of the Third Street Promenade and the throw-back carnival atmosphere of the historic Santa Monica Pier. Located just west of downtown Los Angeles, Santa Monica is a walk- and bike-friendly city of 8.3 square miles (21.5 sq km), its roads and pedestrian paths highly-trafficked by nearly 93,000 locals and millions of tourists a year. Despite its small size, over 29,000 trees line Santa Monica s streets, while more than 4,300 dot the landscape of its 29 parks. These 33,000 public trees are managed by just five in-house staff. A recent municipal forest assessment by the USDA concluded that the total annual ecosystem services delivered by Santa Monica s street trees alone is over $5 million. Santa Monica is proud to have been a Tree City USA for the past 35 years, and more recently, to have become accredited by the SMA. In May the city s Urban Forester, Matthew Wells, was honored to be presented with a plaque by former Los Angeles Chief Forester and Past President of SMA, George Gonzalez, at a meeting of the city s Urban Forest Task Force. 18 Can you tell us about your education and career background leading to your current position as Urban Forester for the City of Santa Monica? Matt Wells: I hold a Master s Degree in Arboriculture and Urban Forestry and a Bachelor s Degree in Landscape Management. I am a Chartered Arboriculturist through the UK s Institute of Chartered Foresters and an ISA Certified Arborist. Previous to my current position, I was the Director of Tree Preservation for NYC Parks, and prior to that I was a Tree Officer at the Central London Borough of Camden. I have presented papers and workshops at urban forestry conferences globally and I am a past Trustee of the Tree Research and Education Endowment (TREE) Fund. What is your focus as Santa Monica s Urban Forester? MW: The City adopted a comprehensive Urban Forest Master Plan in 2011 which describes guiding principles that establish an overall vision for the City s urban forest resource. My primary responsibility is to deliver this vision through the implementation of a systematic, strategic, and sustainable urban forestry program. This requires careful planning, research, and analysis of relevant data against agreed metrics. Further, I report City Trees

16 bi-monthly to an Urban Forest Task Force. This group of community volunteers partners with the City s Public Works Department to execute the Urban Forest Master Plan. They are of great assistance in supporting the preservation and enhancement of the urban forest resource. Do you work within a team of dedicated urban forestry staff? MW: Despite being a small city, the public tree population is quite large. I am fortunate to work with an excellent team of dedicated urban forestry staff within the City s Public Works Department that includes two Urban Forest Supervisors and two Tree Trimmers. We also use a contractor to assist with our tree work operations. In a typical year we will: Prune over 9,000 trees Plant nearly 600 new trees Remove approximately 400 trees Did your community have a favorable reaction to your SMA Accreditation? What local press did you receive? MW: An article ran in the local paper, the Santa Monica Mirror. We also had the award presented at a recent Urban Forest Task Force meeting. The award was very well received and acted as positive recognition of the efforts being made to optimize the management of the City s urban forest. What are some specific ways you involve the public? MW: In addition to bimonthly Urban Forest Task Force meetings, which are open to the public, we hold an annual Arbor Day event and have launched a Heritage Tree Program based on nominations from the community. We are active on social media (@SMTrees on Facebook on Instagram) and field tree-related customer service requests from the City s Government Outreach system on a daily basis. Respond to nearly 1,000 customer service requests How do you evaluate your street/parkway trees and what are your species diversity goals? Review over 400 plans for construction projects potentially impacting trees MW: We are currently in the process of updating the 2011 City of Santa Monica, California Quick Facts Human Population: 92,987 Street Tree Population: 29,102 Park Tree Population: 4,382 Number of Forestry Staff: 5 One of the first five trees selected for Santa Monica s Heritage Tree Program is a century-old Moreton Bay Fig (Ficus macrophylla) affectionately dubbed Morty. 19

17 Urban Forest Master Plan which will include the adoption of a 10% genus and 5% species diversity goal. This diversity goal will be achieved by strategically designating each street segment with a replacement species so that any one species will not exceed 5% of the urban forest. Our street and park trees are evaluated through our planned tree maintenance program. We prune our trees on one-, two-, three- or five-year cycles dependent on species and location. Additionally, in 2015 we launched a new risk management program where we visually inspect all public trees annually, primarily using a drive-by assessment. Santa Monica Urban Forester Matthew Wells, third from left, gathers with former SMA President George Gonzalez, fourth from left, and the members of the Santa Monica Urban Forest Task Force following the SMA plaque presentation. What s next for the City of Santa Monica s Urban Forestry Program? MW: We have an exciting year ahead of us with the following goals: Complete a full update to the 2011 Urban Forest Master Plan. Launch a Heritage Tree Program based on community input to celebrate the very best public trees in the City. Obtain the results of an urban tree canopy (UTC) study currently being performed by the U.S. Forest Service and UC Davis. We will use these results to set a realistic UTC goal for Santa Monica and also better understand how the UTC has changed across the City over the last ten years. Use a newly developed five-year street tree planting priority model to guide planting operations based on current tree resources, human demographics, and environmental need. Urban Forest Supervisors Wister Dorta, left, and Peter Provenzale (not pictured) led a group of volunteers in a tree planting demonstration at this year s annual Arbor Day event. Twenty-four trees were planted on the slope of one of the City s seaside parks. 20 Overall, we will continue our work to maximize the ecosystem services delivered to the community by the urban forest in an economically responsible and risk appropriate manner. City Trees